Railway-rail track-bridge.



PATBNTED JUNE 30, 1903.

0. HAASE.

RAILWAY RAIL TRACK BRIDGE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12, 1901.

N0 MODEL.

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UNlTE STATES Patented J'une 30, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

OTTO HAASE, OF ELBERFELD, GERMANY.

RAI LWAY-RAI L TRACK-BRIDG E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 732,069, dated June 30, 1903.

Application filed November 12, 190] Serial No. 82,062. (No model.)

To ctZZ whom it nuty concern:

Be it known that I, OTTO HAASE, a subject of the King of Prussia, German Emperor, residing at No. 9 Kipdorf, Elberfeld, in the Kingdom of Prussia, in the Empire of Germany, have invented an Improved Bridge or Connection for Temporarily Connecting Separate Tracks and Stretches of the Rails of Railways, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object an improved track-bridge or crossing for temporarily rapidly connecting separate tracks or stretches of rails of railways of all kinds which may be used in place of separate rails, which have to be accurately adjusted in track constructions in consequence of alterations in the length of the track or divisions of the rails.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a plan view, partly broken away, of my improved railway track-bridge. Fig. l is a cross-section on line A B, and Fig. 1 a cross-section on line 0 D, of Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a plan view of a modified construction of the track-bridge; and Fig. 2 is a vertical section on line J K, Fig. .2 a cross-section on line E F, and Fig. 2 a cross-section on line G H, of Fig. 2. Fig. 3 shows a separate fishplate. Fig. 4 shows a construction to prevent longitudinal displacements in the rails, and Figs. 5 and 6 are details hereinafter explained.

By the methods of laying hitherto in vogue a great amount of time was necessarily expended before such tracks could be used in the adjustment of switch rails and points, which adjustment could only usually be effected after the track had been otherwise completed; but by the use of my improved track-bridge the insertion and adjustment of said switch rails and points may be effected during later stoppages in working or may be entirely omitted where the track-bridge is to be permanently employed. In consequence of the saving of time, the track to bemade may be worked upon during stoppages of the working of vehicles over said track to a larger extent than was hitherto possible and also may be proceeded with during very short cessations of working and completed with certainty at a given time, which has hitherto necessitated great expense in order to maintain the full working of the lines according to schedule on account of the laying of provisional side tracks and points.

My track-bridge in consequence of its practical construction is suitable both for double and for multipletracks of any width of gage and for connecting the separate lengths of rail in level railways of all kinds, more particularly street-railways and narrow-gage lines. It is adapted for all possible overhead constructions of this character and may be adjusted to any required gage without further trouble. The various details of the trackbridge consist of iron of the usual cross-sections or of rolled iron and screw-bolts without separate smiths work and may be replaced separately independently of one another.

The use of my track-bridge also allows of any alterations in the length of a track under construction, which may result from a subsequent straightening of the rails or from changes of temperature, and thus prevents lateral displacements arising from an increase of temperature even in long open stretches of track and even Where the rails thereof, as is usually customary in street-railways, are laid withoutjoints, thus allowing for variations of temperature, which. might otherwise be deleterious to the security of working of tracks which are tightly closed by means of fittingrails or fixed points and which might render absolutely necessary a temporary cessation of further operations. An unintentional separation of the interrupted tracks may there fore be prevented by means of the track,- bridge equally as well as with disconnected fitting bars or rails, (guide-rails.)

My improved track-bridge is more particularly described in the following specification, and is shown in its various applications in the accompanying drawiugs,in which Fig. 1 shows in plan and in section the track-bridge only with a facing-point, and Fig. 2 in plan and section with a facing-point and the dead end of a grooved-rail (tramway-rail) track, connecting said track to a similar rail-track. The riveted girder-support a, formed of a U- iron and a fiat grooved rail and having angleirons riveted thereon, takes the place of a switch-tongue or shaped rail in the uninterrupted stretch of track 00 and must therefore be made of such a length that the greatest opening which results by the omission of a single rail may be closed by this bridge-joint alone or with the addition of any suitable rail end, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a removable switch-point b or a separate saddle device 6 0 allowing of the passage of a wheel between a and 0a. The end girders are also arranged so that by means of a short removable piece of rail 61 they may allow of the use of a facing-point as well as a dead end and also a combination of several girder-supports into a single one. In the latter at each separate point of meeting after the omission of the piece of rail (1 or the point 6 is employed-a removable piece of rail d, fixed by means of clamp-plates f, which bridges over the resulting U-iron joint and holds together the two girder-supports, and the joint thus formed may also be strengthened by means of separate fish-plates, Fig. 3, which are screwed on simultaneously with the said clamp-plates. The part of the girder-support which carries the load may, if required, be supported by blocks, concrete bricks, ballast, or the like.

The facing-points b are of the same section as the carrying-rails of the support a and are arranged at their butt-ends also to receive a separate pin attachment e e which secures the same, in addition to the clamp-plates f, against longitudinal displacement. The saddle device 0, formed of a plate of sheet-iron, with angle-irons riveted thereon and which is used where the use of a facing joint or point is not advisable, is fixed by means of clampplates 0' to the foot of the raila: and fitted to the height of 00 by a wooden support-block c and, if necessary, by an equalizing or compensating disk 0 of sheet-iron, and connected with the girder-support a by means of screw-bolts,the said girder-su pport being provided with a releasable wood block 0 for the better mounting of the same. In the case of sections of track having oblique or tongue points a short piece of rail having a butt-end joint must be fixed before the saddle device is laid.

Wrought or cast iron pins 6 are employed to prevent lateral displacement for the supports a, which pins are exactly suited to the actual form of the head of the rail 0: and may be cast on the spot to fit in the case of rails having grooves rolled in them or formed by a separate guide-rail. For receiving these pins the supports a are provided at their ends with receiving-points b and also at suitable distances apart with holes 6 and releasable.

guide-rail pieces e the latter being capable of being fixed even without inserted pins by the clamp-plates ff, which in turn are firmly screwed on the riveted angle-irons g. The further attachment of the supports Ct on the rails :22 is effected according to requirements by screw tension-plates or clamps which are exactly adjustable by means of threaded bolts and also toothed clamp-plates h and revoluble plates 7L2, having a laterally-attached projection and oval hole. In order to admit of longitudinal displacements or adjustments in the rails m, the screw-compresses may be simply loosened, while in order to prevent such displacements when not desired there may be also em ployed for fixing them bent flat iron anchors 70, as shown in Fig. 4, where thereis a butt-edge or rail-joint.

A mutual connection of the girder-supports lying in proximity to one another when the method of operating the track in question admits of it is effected by means of a trackholder 11.

In the case of two adjacent girder-supports placed with reversed joints and also where the angles 9 of two girder-supports do not lie at right angles to one another the rectangular attachment of the track-holder 71 may be effected by means of a perforated and slotted flat bar, Fig. 5, which for this object is firmly screwedbetween two elbow-pieces g on the longitudinal side of a girder-support. If a similar arrangement be employed on two opposite sides of the girder-support, the screwcompresses h and also the fiat iron anchor it, alone or together, may be employed independently of the elbow-pieces g. The support is accurately mounted upon rails with an inner inclination where a track-holder is employed by placing beneath said rails suitable inclination-plates, Fig. 6.

In tracks with plain rails. where the displacement of only one support or the connection of two supports by means of a trackholder is not possible a shaped block, adapted to be applied to the outside of the rail by means of a screw-compress h, and which is indicated in dotted lines in the drawings, may be employed as a counter-piece for the cams e, the clamp-plate h then being omitted.

For the purpose of strengthening the girdersupports a the angle-pieces g at one end of the length of the girder-support may be applied on both sides of the same and be so perforated that the flat bars, Fig. 5, may be omitted.

Where the displacement of the track-bridge in curved lengths of track owing to the adjustment of a straight rail or the like cannot be avoided, pieces d of rail or separate curved supports a may be employed.

Having now described my invention, what I wish to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is A track-bridge for railways of all kinds which serve for forwarding passengers and goods, characterized by the same being applicable for single, double or multiple tracks and separate lengths of rails, the separate supports a of which, composed of profile iron and a rail, are suitable for any usual pattern of rails, being able to be rapidly and securely fastened by means of removable cams c and adjustable screw compresses or bolts h k and fiat iron anchors at the interrupted section of rails m, and if desired mutually connected ICO with track-holders,while the crossing between actual crossing-place a piece of track-rail d the parts a andw may be made by means of remay be employed, substantially as hereinmovable switch-points b each one of which, in before described and shown. consequence of the uniform shape of the ends In witness whereof I have hereunto set my 5 of all the supports, may be replaced by an hand in presence of two witnesses.

adjustable saddle device and a piece of trackrail (1 which arrangement also allows of the OTTO HAASE' combination of several separate supports into Witnesses: a single long support, and by the omission of OTTO K6NIG,

lo the crossover-pieces b and 4 4 and cl atthe J. A. RITTERSHAUS. 

